I wonder if the footage they have for the trailer is the footage from the prototype which Silicon Knights was making to try and pitch the game to Nintendo while burning development resources Activision was paying for which should have gone to the X-Men game instead.

*cough*

Pretty much.

How can anyone still have faith in Dyack after all he went through in the last 8 years is beyond me.

Judging from Mama Robotniks thread and the pics of ED2, it looks like what we see in the trailer could be stuff that they just had lying around and was like, "let's slap it together into a trailer and see how much money we can get".

Dyack doing crowd funding? and I thought Thor giving Loki a 3rd chance in Thor 2 was a retarded idea.

This.
Seriously this.
Lol... T_T

Originally Posted by Bit-Bit

Judging from Mama Robotniks thread and the pics of ED2, it looks like what we see in the trailer could be stuff that they just had lying around and was like, "let's slap it together into a trailer and see how much money we can get".

Yeah. I have the exact same feeling... And the comment on the Kotaku article saying that they had a small demo in a church... well... there is a church-like bulding prominently shown in that trailer... o_o Eh...

Judging from Mama Robotniks thread and the pics of ED2, it looks like what we see in the trailer could be stuff that they just had lying around and was like, "let's slap it together into a trailer and see how much money we can get".

I suspect this is much closer to the reality than anyone would want to admit to themselves.

Judging from Mama Robotniks thread and the pics of ED2, it looks like what we see in the trailer could be stuff that they just had lying around and was like, "let's slap it together into a trailer and see how much money we can get".

Originally Posted by Ridley327

I suspect this is much closer to the reality than anyone would want to admit to themselves.

So they are basically asking for 1.1 million dollars to make a game (in one year) for which they only managed to make one church level in 2 years using someone else's money using a team a fraction of the size of the original one?

Wasn't it rumored that part of the reason Nintendo dropped ED2 was to distance themselves from SK's legal troubles?

I'm not sure, as I wasn't aware of those rumors. Silicon Knights really has no assets and is down to less than 5 employees according to Wikipedia, and was ordered to destroy all of their internal materials derived from the use of Unreal Engine 3. I know they were accused of funneling money from their X-Men deal with Sega into prototyping ED2, but what engine would they have used? If these prototypes were developed using any UE3 assets, expect Epic to rain more shit on Dyack as a result.

So a colleague of mine (we work at a couple of Dutch gaming websites) was on the official crowdfunding website for this game. It was online for a short moment and then was taken offline again. But he made some screenshots.

A few things:
- The website already had 10.000 dollar of donations, but it was impossible to donate money. Strange.
- The counter said they needed 1,2 million dollar, but in the text it said 1,1 million dollar
- The team consists of 8 men right now.
- IGN should have info on May 6th, but its strange that the website was online (for a short time)
- Dyack is chief creative, NOT ceo

I'm not sure, as I wasn't aware of those rumors. Silicon Knights really has no assets and is down to less than 5 employees according to Wikipedia, and was ordered to destroy all of their internal materials derived from the use of Unreal Engine 3. I know they were accused of funneling money from their X-Men deal with Sega into prototyping ED2, but what engine would they have used? If these prototypes were developed using any UE3 assets, expect Epic to rain more shit on Dyack as a result.

They could be reusing the same models in another engine. The 3D models are not tied to the engine. Only the way used to render them is engine-specific.

So a colleague of mine (we work at a couple of Dutch gaming websites) was on the official crowdfunding website for this game. It was online for a short moment and then was taken offline again. But he made some screenshots.

A few things:
- The website already had 10.000 dollar of donations, but it was impossible to donate money. Strange.
- The counter said they needed 1,2 million dollar, but in the text it said 1,1 million dollar
- The team consists of 8 men right now.
- IGN should have info on May 6th, but its strange that the website was online (for a short time)

So more info, not on our website, but this text has been taken straight from the crowdfunding website that's offline right now. Its all too exciting to keep for ourselves so here you go NeoGAF :)

Darkness has returned…

When Detective Paul Becker is called to one of the bloodiest gang massacres in Louisiana state history, only two survivors remain from a brutal conflict between two rival cults. As Becker begins his interrogations of the suspects, their combined recollections will uncover the truth about the ‘Eternals’.

Featuring an ensemble cast of heroes and villains, Shadow of the Eternals will span over 2500 years of history throughout Egypt, England, Hungary, and the United States. Players will question the perception of reality as they try to balance the mechanics of combat, magick, and sanity events to progress through the adventure.

Shadow of the Eternals will take players on a memorable journey throughout time; weaving historical fact with disturbing fiction to create an experience unlike any other.
The Production of Episode 1

A major portion of Episode 1 of Shadow of the Eternals takes place at the real-life location of Erzebet Bathory’s home, Cachtice Castle, in Hungary 1610 AD.
Detective Paul Becker

Clara

Erezebet Bathory, The Blood Countess

The Game Pillars
Order vs Chaos

Order and Chaos are alignments (themes), associated with the Greater Eternals, that define the state of the game world. A Balance between them is the optimal state. Order and Chaos are in constant opposition with one another, but should not be associated with Good and Evil.

Historical fact woven with disturbing fiction

The lore of Shadow of the Eternals will be coupled with content that is historically accurate, in that either it did happen during the corresponding time period, or it is reasonable that it could have happened.
Question the perception of reality

Sanity Events will be a vehicle for the game to achieve exploration, storytelling, investigation, and puzzle-solving that will help develop adventure elements.

Episodic Adventure

Shadow of the Eternals will cover 2500 years of human history in a variety of locations across the globe. Each episode will highlight one of these locations and a unique story featuring characters that are part of a larger ensemble cast. Players will piece together how each character’s fate is intertwined with one another as more episodes are released.

Our Goal

Shadow of the Eternals will be an episodic series, and to complete the first episode and continue production on future episodes, we need approximately 1.1 million dollars. Any money raised beyond this will contribute to future episodes, additional characters, in-game perks, and additional platforms. The more money that we raise, the more we will deliver based on what our fans want.

Stretch Goals Progress

The Order of the Unseen

Upon pledging, you will be granted a Forum Ribbon with access to our Official Development Forums, and a place within the “Order of the Unseen,” where you can begin sharing your ideas about all aspects of Shadow of the Eternals, helping create an experience that you – the gamer – want to play. Your participation in the forums will be rewarded with having your name included in the game credits, merchandise, and much more!

The email that you use to pledge should be the same email you use to register with our community forums. It does not matter whether you sign up for the forums before, or after pledging – our database will recognize you.

Why Crowdfunding?

The primary reason to crowdfund Shadow of the Eternals is because it allows us to work directly with our fans, and gain valuable feedback in developing the project. We can develop a rapport with our audience that would otherwise be difficult in a traditional setting.

Secondly, the games industry is currently in a state in which publishers no longer take chances on a project like this. We feel that the best way to bring this title to the public is to release it independently.

Who We Are

Precursor Games is founded by a team of experienced game developers on the belief that digital distribution has shaped the way video games are made. Precursor is committed to fan interaction, and involving the community in its development process.

As fans voice their opinions and ideas, we will receive the feedback and criticism necessary to deliver the best games possible. Precursor will release its games directly to the fans.

How To Pledge

Simply scroll to the top of the page. On the right side you’ll see the “Support Now” button on our Crowdfunding application. On the Checkout page, you’ll be able to select which tier you’d like to pledge towards, and see the rewards you’ll receive. Here you must also enter your email address, as that email will help us recognize you when granting access to our Official Development Forums.

Once you click Complete Checkout, you’ll be redirected to Paypal to complete the payment. Please do not hesitate to email us with any questions you may have at support@precursorgames.com

The Rewards

Exclusive Membership in the Order of the Unseen gives you the following:

Access to the Official Development Forums
Direct interaction with the development team of Shadow of the Eternals
Membership card (Digital)
Community Participation Rewards

Community Participation Rewards:
Being a member of the Order rewards players for contributing to the community forums. By contributing to the forums you may receive the following rewards:

Your name in the credits of Shadow of the Eternals (in-game)
Contribution to the Ephemeral Codex (physical book)
Privileges to vote on the best community created Sanity Events (in-game)

Receive the Pilot episode of Shadow of the Eternals – ‘A Dream Within A Dream’.Click here to read more about Episode 1.

Receive the first five episodes of Shadow of the Eternals as they are released. Each episode features at least one playable character, access to a variety of new play mechanics, historically accurate weapons, locations and new magick.

Receive the first six episodes of Shadow of the Eternals as they are released. Each episode features at least one playable character, access to a variety of new play mechanics, historically accurate weapons, locations and new magick.

Receive the entire first season of Shadow of the Eternals (twelve episodes). Each episode features at least one playable character, access to a variety of new play mechanics, historically accurate weapons, locations and new magick.

Receive a digital download to the DRM-free Original Soundtrack for Shadow of the Eternals: Episode 1. Available in mp3, mp4, and WAV formats.

TODO – YouTube Video for Bathory”s Theme with a concept art.

Receive in-game entry to a hidden room called Whateley’s Secret Study, containing special weapons, spells and items to aid you on your journey throughout Shadow of the Eternals.

A powerful in-game weapon from the past. Magickally enchanted, it is both a melee weapon and ranged weapon projecting a spectral image of itself towards its intended victim.

Change the appearance of playable characters Clara and Becker with outfits to be voted on by the community.

The official script for the game released in episodic installments.

Listen to audio recordings of ‘Whateley’s Journal’, narrated by the mysterious Whateley himself.

Character Concept Mini-Poster of one of the main characters from Shadow of the Eternals. Measures 9 x 11.

Character Concept Mini-Poster of one of the main characters from Shadow of the Eternals. Exclusively signed and numbered by the team. Measures 9 x 11.

High Quality Poster for Shadow of the Eternals. Measures 24 x 36.

High Quality Poster for Shadow of the Eternals. Exclusively signed and numbered by the team. Measures 24 x 36.

If I remember correctly, the use of a sanity meter is included in the patent... So, technically, if they don't SHOW a sanity meter, and give no way to the player to know the sanity level, that COULD get around the patent.

[EDIT] Forget it, I just reread the patent. I'm stupid.

[EDIT2] But! The patent mention that the level of preparation to the encounter can leverage the amount of sanity lost as well as the type of encounter... Technically, if they make the sanity loss a flat loss, no matter what is the encounter... and make some more minute changes, that COULD be pulled off.

If I remember correctly, the use of a sanity meter is included in the patent... So, technically, if they don't SHOW a sanity meter, and give no way to the player to know the sanity level, that COULD get around the patent.

Nintendo would also have to take legal action to enforce the patent, too. If the game is slated for release on Wii U, they might grant a license or just choose not to take legal action.

I don't know, I think in some cases, going from (compared to today's industry) smaller productions to working on games with tens of millions of dollars on the line might have been too much for some guys to handle. Maybe working on a smaller scale release without the pressure of it needing to sell 3 million copies just to make its money back could help someone like Dyack find his old self again. I can't say I'd trust him with my money, though.

Really, these guys should just hole up and make something smaller and downloadable to try to gain a little cred back. Asking for a million bucks after all the bridges they've burned seems like madness to me.

So a colleague of mine (we work at a couple of Dutch gaming websites) was on the official crowdfunding website for this game. It was online for a short moment and then was taken offline again. But he made some screenshots.

A few things:- The website already had 10.000 dollar of donations, but it was impossible to donate money. Strange.
- The counter said they needed 1,2 million dollar, but in the text it said 1,1 million dollar
- The team consists of 8 men right now.
- IGN should have info on May 6th, but its strange that the website was online (for a short time)

If we find out more you'll hear it.

Its not even out and its already shady. That fact that is has its own site instead of KS means it might be one of those "Flexible funding"campaings where they keep your cash even if the goal isnt reached.

Nintendo would also have to take legal action to enforce the patent, too. If the game is slated for release on Wii U, they might grant a license or just choose not to take legal action.

Yeah, but if they don't follow enough "claims" as defined in the patent, they could win. But yeah, it's assured that Nintendo will have to sue if they don't pay the license fee... Something I wouldn't be surprised of Dyack. It's very probable he will just act all surprised, and act all innocent, saying Nintendo is out of their mind to sue him, that they have absolutely no claim whatsoever to that mechanic, or something like that. :O

A few things:
- The website already had 10.000 dollar of donations, but it was impossible to donate money. Strange.
- The counter said they needed 1,2 million dollar, but in the text it said 1,1 million dollar
- The team consists of 8 men right now.
- IGN should have info on May 6th, but its strange that the website was online (for a short time)
- Dyack is chief creative, NOT ceo